The Newfoundland Expedition, August 2011, Part lX

The Sunrise at Berry Hill Campground,
Gros Morne, Western Newfoundland

Our Camp, complete with tarps for the
morning rain

 Well, this day started off in a massive windstorm that woke me up early and allowed me to see the most spectacular sunrise I have seen in some time.  I mean, it rivaled desert sunrises, and mountain sunrises and more!   See for yourself, but it was unbelievable!    The wind shook the trees and the sky changed several times in the fifteen minutes or so that I watched, standing in the cold wind at about five thirty in the morning.

Japhy gets ready for breakfast

I got pretty cold, so I finished up my photos and video taking, and went back to sleep in the tent.   Abigail was snoring away, (she had complained about a sore throat for some time) and was out cold, and Ben got up and took a few pictures, but went back to sleep, and Nicole was asleep too.  

It didn't take long for the rain storm to start.   It was amazing.   The rain and the wind combined to pound the tent and lift the tarp up as high as it would go, like a sail, and then it would slam down as hard as it could, flattening the fiberglass tent poles and tent rain fly as far as it would go.   Then it would rain hard, and water would start to collect on the flattened tarp, and as it rose again, it would fly off and splash out by Ben's side of the tent, with about a half a gallon of water poured instantly on the soft ground near his corner.

Ben searches for a cup of tea

Abigail crashes out in the tent

Reading through the storm

I woke up at one point and checked the tarp, which had broken through one of the grommets by Ben's corner, and went out and tied it back up in my bare feet.   It was refreshing and cold, but I got it tied up and went back to sleep again.   I know a lot of you morning people will hate me for being able to do that, but it is something I have been able to do all of my life, so deal with it!   (Trista, on the other hand, is the opposite.  If she is up, she's up, for good, all day.)

Ben loads the woodstove in the
Berry Hill Campground Kitchen Shelter

Anyway, it got light but it was hard to tell through the thick clouds and driving rain.   The entire campground pretty much cleared out by ten o'clock, and Abigail and I read on and off as we lay and listened to the rain and the wind crashing around.   It was a great storm.

When we did get up, we went out to the kitchen shelter to make breakfast.   Ben got the stove going there, to warm up, dry our wet things and we made pancakes, I think, with Hawk Circle Maple Syrup, which turned out really good.   We also made some eggs, and a few other things.   Hot chocolate, tea and even a little oatmeal too, I think, if I remember right.   We took some showers, and chatted with Ranger Harold while we lounged, as we were in no hurry to rush out and see the sights in the rain.

The "After Breakfast, Wait out the Storm"
Card Game!

We also at this point, made a plan about our next few days.   Seeing as we didn't have much time left, we wanted to get out into the backcountry, but the Long Range Traverse still seemed daunting for Abigail and her sore throat, and so we decided to inquire about the Gros Morne Mountain hike and overnight.   However, we needed to check in at the Visitor's Center, to check email, and see what the weather was going to be for the next day or so.

The weather turned out to look good for the next day or so, and the hike seemed like a go, if we could get Abigail healthy.   So we left the Visitor Center and went a few miles away to the Bonne Bay Health Centre in Norris Point.  

I had heard a few things about the Canadian Health Care system, so I was kind of excited to see it up close and personal.  First of all, it was in a beautiful building, very accessible and state of the art, and not really "hospitally', if you know what I mean.   Lots of yellows, oranges and reds in various pastels, maybe even a little purple or violet, if I remember right!

At the Bonne Bay Health Center
in Norris Point

The Hallway to Intensive Care

Gros Morne Mountain in the Distance:
Yeah, we're goin' there!

So, we went in, and signed in, and Abigail got seen by a nurse, and the we had to wait for about twenty minutes (Oh, yeah, that Socialist Healthcare sucks!   You have to wait, and wait and wait!), which was about the same amount of time we usually wait for Javi's appointments back in New York.  During that time, I walked around, popped into the cafeteria and got a sandwich and chatted with the nurses and staff about their hospital, and how they liked it in western Newfoundland.   My mom is a nurse, so I just talked for a bit and everyone was really friendly and sharing about their stories, and asking about our adventures.  During that time, Abigail was seen by a doctor, prescribed some meds and was ready to roll.  So we headed to a pharmacy, got some stuff and headed back to the campground....

The After Dinner Scrabble
Game Board

That night, we made some awesome fish and veggies, with rice.  Oh, man, it was good!   And we played Scrabble, and had tea and just had a good time.   And slept like kings!   And I was thinking about the stuff I needed to pack in my backpack for our food for the trip, and clothing, and gear and all that.

 I have to admit, I heard all the talk about the steep ascent, and I was a little nervous.  But I told my body, I am going anyway, so deal with it, and get me up there!   It is going to be a trip!